Walleye aren't native, but since their discovery in Eastern Washington in 1962, they've spread throughout the Columbia and lower Snake River systems, including the Willamette River and Multnomah Channel.

Drought and warm water of the past few years apparently resulted in a major spawning event, especially in reservoirs behind The Dalles and John Day dams.

Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife officials who manage the pikeminnow bounty fishery told Thomas the walleye bycatch during pikeminnow fishing season more than doubled in 2016.

To whet anglers' appetites, Oregon and Washington have removed walleye and bass limits on the Columbia River (but not the Willamette).

In a final feature for the paper (more on that in a moment), Thomas, The Columbian's outdoor writer, said he and a neighbor abandoned this year's elusive spring chinook fishery for the gorge "Once the creel checks from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife started indicating catches of five to seven walleye per rod in March."

Walleye prefer reservoirs and slow-moving rivers, so Thomas and his partner adjusted for this year's heavy flows by fishing slower water downriver from points of land and trolling downstream with the current.

Walleye also are bottom dwellers and soft biters. They're considered the tastiest white-fleshed fish in North America's freshwater.

"We caught fish in as few as 12 feet and as deep as 49 feet," Thomas wrote. "Once the protection of the point of land was lost, and the current increased the speed of the boat, it was time to reel in and run back upstream. Keeping the offering on the bottom and feeling the tap of the bottom is key."

Most walleye taken during the current excellent fishing upriver have been about the same size, but there are fish 12 to 20 pounds from the Gorge up to Tri Cities, Wash., and many believe it's just a matter of time before the world record (25 pounds) is broken somewhere in the Pacific Northwest.

While the walleye bite in the gorge raised eyebrows all winter and spring, fishing has "been terrible" in and around the Portland area, said Lyle Amundson, president of the Lower Columbia Walleye Club (lowercolumbiawalleyeclub.com).

Until the Columbia's flow drops further, the best bet is probably the lower end of Multnomah Channel.

Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife biologists said an unknown bacterial infection causes the welts and spots, but they don't knowwhy it seems most prevalent in Hagg Lake or why it doesn't affect bass, panfish or catfish in the lake.

And it's not related to algae blooms.

"We call it 'strawberry disease,' said Tom Murtagh, district fish biologist. "It's not fatal for the fish and isn't a danger to humans."

Murtagh said the infection is a skin disease and the flesh of infected fish is still safe to eat if anglers just "carve it off."

"Some years it's seen in about 50 percent (of the fish)," he said. "Other years it's one in 10. It seems related to warm water and Hagg Lake gets hot very quickly."

No roadkill...yet: The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife issued a reminder this week that a recent law passed by the Legislature allowing drivers to salvage road-killed deer and elk (only) won't take effect until Jan. 1, 2019.

The agency said that gives biologists enough time to craft rules for adoption by the state Fish and Wildlife Commission.